Month: June 2016

There is no such thing as a perfect day, but there sure are things that make days better. This post is merely mentioning some of them.

Good breakfast is a great way to ensure a good start to the day. Personally, I can’t eat just after I wake up and thus my breakfasts are typically more like brunches. The photo here shows one of my favourite breakfasts, the smashed avo from the PonyCat. It’s a big breakfast, but most of the ingredients are healthy and it’s a perfect treat if you suspect you’ll need a mood booster.

Work might not be a common thing to put on here, but if I can get some work done during breakfast, I know I’m at least off to a good start. This is usually when I blog, prep cases for debates, work on bureaucracy related stuff, or get some studying done. Work makes you feel productive and if you can feel productive before midday even on a day off, you’ve instantly made that day better.

Animals. I could just have left it there, but seriously, being around animals is one of the best things you can do to boost your mood. No matter if it’s our cat trying to sleep on my neck or laptop, or if it’s spending time in the stable… Being around animals simply makes me happy. My quality of life increased substantially when I moved to a house that came with a cat.

Exercise is another one of those things that can turn a day from average to good. The key to making exercise enjoyable is simple – do something you enjoy. For me, it’s either swimming or horseback riding. Both of those sports make for great exercise, swimming is a full body workout and horseback riding is leg day intensified. When it’s hot outside, going to the pool hardly feels like a chore and you can find me there almost every day. Now that it’s colder, I’ve started to return to my roots as an equestrian.

Social time is a bit hit or miss for me. Some days I enjoy a break from people and on other days I enjoy being around people. If I feel like being social, I typically have lunch with someone, chill with my housemate, or find a bunch of friends to play Cards Against Humanity with. Even just going to the movies together is a great way to enjoy someone’s company even if you don’t have the energy to do something more active together.

Luxurious showers are the poor man’s baths. Or at least my version of them. I’d love to have a bathtub, but in the meantime I’ll settle for a shower with a body scrub and some nice bath products. If you’re suffering from stiff muscles, showers are a great way to relax and loosen up a bit. In winter, one of the best things to do is simply to have a heater on in your room so that you don’t have to walk into a wall of cold after your shower.

Caffeine is my true love. My one addiction. When you’re having a bad day, have some coffee. Don’t spoil it by adding sugar, drink it black or with milk if you’re using instant coffee. If you’re going out for it, keep it to one that is coffee and milk. That’s the best way to actually feel the flavour. If you have to add 6 sugars, stop drinking coffee and just grab a soda instead. Yes, I have surprisingly strong opinions on coffee.

Spare time? Playing some games is a perfect way for me to unwind. It’s also a good way to keep your mind active. If I’m having a day where I need to distract myself from life, I play video games. Strategy games are a way to keep busy and get some intellectual stimulation. RPGs are great for when you need to get involved in a story and get some emotional rewards.

Skyrim has an endless lineup of side characters and one of the ones who truly managed to stand out is Aela the Huntress. She’s a Nord and a core member of The Companions, a brotherhood of warriors that the player character encounters early on in the game. If you play your cards right, Aela can become your companion or even spouse. She’s highly skilled in Archery and is mechanically in the Thief class. Aela is a strong and honourable character who clings to her beliefs no matter what. In that regard one should perhaps say that her honourable side is subject to debate.

One of the most common style myths is that individuality stops after 40. That we have 25 years at most to experiment before we ‘settle down’ style wise. I personally consider this to be utter nonsense. Let us have a look at some looks that are vintage friendly and made for mature women.

TotalBiscuit is one of the few YouTuber’s who is often able to change my opinion. He is a video game critic I have immense respect for, but this time I was not persuaded.

Before I truly begin my rebuttal, I’d like to point out that I am indeed biased towards Sony. I currently have a PS2 and a PS3 (even a PSP), I cried with happiness when I watched the PS4 E3 press conference, and when I got a tattoo to symbolise my love for gaming, I chose the Playstation symbols. This blogpost is not about which company ‘won’ E3, but about the nature of console players.

The main issue I find with TB’s commentary is that it is very much a PC gamer’s analysis of the world of consoles. There’s not necessarily anything wrong with PC gaming or the culture surrounding it, but there are fundamental differences between consoles and PCs. There are two primary points where I believe TB’s commentary misses the mark this time.

This is a debate that pops up every now and then, especially when a game with a trans character has recently been launched. I don’t have enough space to cover the entire debate in one post, so instead I wish to focus on the single most peculiar argument used against games that contain trans characters.

“There’s no reason for them to be trans”
Effectively this means that the character could just have been a “real” woman instead of a trans woman. Typically this argument comes out when a trans character’s main story line (if they even have one) does not concern their gender identity.Read More »